


Shuffle

by Brambleshadow_of_WindClan



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-10-05
Updated: 2013-11-13
Packaged: 2017-12-28 11:19:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,535
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/991428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Brambleshadow_of_WindClan/pseuds/Brambleshadow_of_WindClan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Doctor is now curious about Rose’s music choices, thanks to her playing “Bad Case of Lovin’ You” and then “Pour Some Sugar on Me.” So how does he satisfy his curiosity? By nicking her iPod, putting it on Shuffle, and listening to it, of course. [Sequel to “Bad Case of Lovin’ You (Doctor, Doctor)”]</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Magic Man

**Author's Note:**

  * For [murtaghismyhottie](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=murtaghismyhottie).



> A reviewer on "Bad Case of Lovin' You (Doctor, Doctor)" over on FF.net requested more one-shots where the Doctor finds out more of Rose's taste in music. I had to comply. This fic is entirely their fault.
> 
> Suggestions are appreciated. This is probably going to reflect what's on my MP3, and I mostly listen to classic rock. Then again, we don't really know what Rose's music tastes are, do we?

The Doctor, once he was sure that Rose was occupied elsewhere in the TARDIS (namely, taking a shower before going to bed), snuck into her room and nicked her iPod from where it was lying on the nightstand. Ever sicne she’d played Robert Palmer’s “Bad Case of Lovin’ You” (and then Def Leppard’s “Pour Some Sugar on Me”) he’d been curious to see what other artists she listened to. Naturally, the only solution was to steal her iPod the moment he had the chance. In this case, it had meant waiting until his companion was preparing herself to go to bed.

Now that he had his prize, the Doctor stole out of Rose’s room and headed for the library. In case Rose decided to check up on him—though that was highly unlikely—he could always use the façade of reading a book as a cover.

Once he was inside the TARDIS library, the Doctor plucked a random book from one of the shelves—only later would he realize it was Agatha Christie’s _Murder on the Oriental Express_ —and made himself comfortable in his favorite chair close to the fire. He propped the book open, set the iPod on Shuffle, and rested it between the pages. Eyes closed, he waited for the first song to come on.

He didn’t have to wait long. An electric guitar solo filled his ears, the intro to an early 70s-era Heart song. Now if only he could remember which one . . .

Then the lyrics started.

_Cold late night so long ago  
When I was not so strong, you know  
A pretty man came to me  
Never seen eyes so blue  
You know I could not run away  
It seemed we’d seen each other in a dream  
Seemed like he knew me  
He looked right through me, yeah_

He remembered meeting her in the basement of the clothing store, back when he’d been all blue eyes, close-cropped black hair, big ears, and leather jacket. She’d frozen when he’d grabbed her hand and told her to run.

_“Come on home, girl,” he said with a smile  
“You don’t have to love me yet, let’s get high a while  
But try to understand, try to understand  
Try, try, try to understand  
I’m a magic man”_

The Doctor scoffed. Since when had he said that? Oh, wait, he was reading too much into the song. Again.

_Winter nights we sang in tune  
Played inside the months of moon  
Never think of never, let the spell last forever  
Well, summer lover passed to fall  
Tried to realize it all  
Mama says she’s worried, growing up in a hurry, yeah_

Well, Jackie Tyler certainly had been worried. She’d had a right to be, given Rose had been gone for a year. (For them, it had been a few days, but that wasn’t the point.)

_“Come on home, girl,” Mama cried on the phone  
“Too soon to lose my baby, yet my girl should be at home”  
But try to understand, try to understand  
Try, try, try to understand  
He’s a magic man, mama, ahh, he’s a magic man_

Come to think of it, that was what basically what Jackie had said to Rose, and probably what Rose had been thinking. And, in a way, the Doctor supposed he _could_ be viewed as a magic man: He came and went in a mysterious blue box, took Rose to distant planets and times. And he had the ability to regenerate, though he didn’t want to change out of this form yet. Why would he?

_“Come on home girl,” he said with a smile  
“I cast my spell of love on you, a woman from a child  
But try to understand, try to understand, oh . . . ooh  
Try, try to understand  
Try, try, try to understand he’s a magic man, oh yeah  
Ooo, he’s got the magic hands_

 _Well, I don’t know about that,_ the Doctor thought. _Okay, maybe._ Truth was, he was hopelessly in love with her. A Time Lord in love with a human? If any of his people had found out . . . But there weren’t any more Time Lords. He’d killed them all in the Time War. He’d had no choice.

And yeah, in a way he supposed he had done as the song said. Now home was the TARDIS and wherever Rose— _his_ pink-and-yellow girl—was. She’d helped to make him better, and along the way they’d both fallen for each other. Rose was only nineteen when he’d first met her, still a child, but she’d grown and matured while she had been traveling with him.

So, if this song was sort of from Rose’s point of view, did that mean she was in love with him? He’d noticed the looks, the somewhat provocative clothing (he was still a bloke, after all), but . . .

“Come on home, girl,” he said with a smile.  
“You don’t have to love me yet, let’s get high awhile”  
But try to understand, try to understand  
Try to understand, oh, try, try, try to understand  
He’s a magic man, oh yeah, oohh

Okay, yeah, Rose probably was in love with him. Great. Brilliant. Fantastic. _Molto bene._

So why wasn’t he happy about realizing that?


	2. Paper Sun

The next song came on, a dark guitar solo. For a couple seconds the Doctor’s right index finger hovered over the fast-forward button. Then he just decided to let it play. Besides, he was racking his brain trying to figure out which band this was. Ah well. He’d figure it out eventually.

Or maybe not.

Then the artist began singing, and the Doctor’s face became unreadable.

_Does it hurt to remember?  
Does it help to forget?  
Do you know what you started  
When you lit the fuse of regret?_

Ah.

Right.

Well, that was probably one answer to his earlier question.

Sometimes he really hated being alive.

_There’s not a reason why you’ve come undone  
There’s nothing left to justify, this can’t go on  
There’s nothing left inside as I walk this broken land_

 _Don’t I know it,_ the Doctor thought bitterly.

_Cos you’re living on a paper sun  
Blind to all the damage done.  
Living on a paper sun  
Waiting for the tide to turn.  
Living on a paper sun,  
You can’t hide and you can’t run.  
All your dreams have come and gone  
Living on a paper sun._

How many lives had he taken in the Time War? How many people had died for him, to buy him time to escape? And he would just saunter off back to his TARDIS and go wherever he fancied.

At least he had Rose. This sort of life was “better with two”, as she’d put it, and he’d given up his ninth life to save her.

But even having Rose to distract him wasn’t enough.

_Do you still hear ’em screaming?  
And does the fear make you run?  
Is the anger inside of you  
A gift from father to son?_

_I don’t believe in you; you’ve come undone.  
I don’t believe in what you do; this can’t go on.  
I don’t believe in you as I walk this broken land._

_Cos you’re living on a paper sun  
Blind to all the damage done.  
Living on a paper sun  
Waiting for the tide to turn.  
Living on a paper sun,  
You can’t hide and you can’t run.  
All your dreams have come and gone  
Living on a paper sun._

_Yes, I do still hear them,_ the Doctor thought sadly. _So, so many . . . But I had to stop them! There wasn’t any other choice!_

_You will discover the way to suffer,  
And like no other you will feed the fire._

“Oh, don’t give me that,” he snapped. “. . . Oh, great, I’m talking to an iPod now.”

_There’s not a reason why you’ve come undone.  
There’s nothing left to justify; this can’t go on.  
There’s nothing left inside as I walk this broken land._

_Cos you’re living on a paper sun  
Blind to all the damage done.  
Living on a paper sun  
Waiting for the tide to turn.  
Living on a paper sun.  
Waiting for the night.  
All your dreams have come and gone._

“Well, that’s a cheery thought,” muttered the Doctor as the guitars went to the outro. “Who is this, anyway?” His eyes opened, looked down at the glowing screen. “Huh. Def Leppard. Really? Hhhm. I’ve got to take Rose to see them in concert sometime. During the Hysteria tour, maybe? Then again, Rose and her pretty boys . . . 

“I don’t suppose it would be too much to ask for a happy song this time? Or something more upbeat?”

Of course it would.


	3. Twilight Zone

The next song started out with a synthesizer chord and a neat bass guitar riff, along with drums. Almost instantly, the Doctor recognized it and mouthed the words to the intro: _“Somewhere in a lonely hotel room there’s a guy starting to realize that eternal fate has turned its back on him. It’s two a.m.”_ It wasn’t exactly a _happy_ song, but he liked the rhythm.

_It’s two a.m., the fear has gone.  
I’m sittin’ here waitin’, the gun is still warm.  
Maybe my connection is tired of takin’ chances.  
Yeah, there’s a storm on the loose,  
Sirens in my head.  
I’m wrapped up in silence,  
All circuits are dead.  
I cannot decode.  
My whole life spins into a frenzy._

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse.  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go  
Now that I’ve gone too far?_

“I can relate to that, mate.”

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse.  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go  
Now that I’ve gone too far?_

_Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone._

“Weeellll, not really. I’d regenerate. And no guns. I hate guns. If I see one more gun . . .”

_I’m falling down a spiral,  
Destination unknown.  
Double-crossed messenger  
All alone.  
I can’t get no connection.  
I can’t get through.  
Where are you?_

_Well, the night weighs heavy on his guilty mind  
This far from the borderline.  
And when the hitman comes  
He knows damn well he has been cheated.  
And he says:_

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse.  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go  
Now that I’ve gone too far?_

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse.  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go  
Now that I’ve gone too far?_

_Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
When the bullet hits the bone._

During the bass solo, the Doctor couldn’t help wondering why Rose had this song on her iPod. Then he decided it didn’t matter, because this was just really cool to listen to and air-guitar along with. The fact he could easily imagine himself being in the situation helped some, he guessed, even as he was nodding his head in time with the beat and pretending to play a bass guitar.

As for the line about the bullet hitting the bone, though . . . No, ta. He’d had to regenerate once from being shot in the chest and dying on the operating table. He’d probably freaked poor Grace out, but he couldn’t blame her for not believing him at first. Considering he’d had retrograde amnesia from regeneration trauma, he hadn’t been in the best place either.

Maybe he could see if they could cross over into the twilight zone. Rose would like that, he figured. Then again . . . maybe not. He’d seen the episodes “The Monsters are Due on Maple Street”, “Time Enough at Last,” and “Nightmare at 50,00 Feet.” Then there was that one about the ventriloquist’s dummy . . . It gave him chills just thinking about it.

 _Who is this?_ he wondered. A quick check revealed the artist was a group called Golden Earring. _Huh. I wonder if they’ve made any other songs. This is the only one you really hear._

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse;  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go now that I’ve gone too far?_

_Help, I’m steppin’ into the twilight zone.  
The place is a madhouse;  
Feels like being cloned.  
My beacon’s been moved under moon and star.  
Where am I to go now that I’ve gone too far?_

_Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone._

_Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
Soon you will come to know  
When the bullet hits the bone._

_When the bullet hits the bone, uh uh.  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
When the bullet hits the bone, uh uh.  
When the bullet hits the bone.  
When the bullet hits the bone, uh-uh.  
When the bullet hits the bone._

Considering he’d once regenerated due to a bullet, no thanks. For most of that regeneration, in the beginning, regeneration trauma had caused him to lose his memory. Having to deal with the Master on top of all of that had been hectic to say the least.

Still, this was a good song. No wonder Rose had it on her iPod. Cool lyrics, great beat, awesome bass riff . . .

Who would’ve known Rose was a classic rock lover? He certainly never would have suspected it.

Then again, considering his own tastes, maybe he wasn’t the best person to judge.


	4. Stairway to Heaven

The next song started with a soft acoustic guitar and flute intro, one the Doctor recognized instantly. A smile slowly formed and he tapped his foot in time to beat, conducting an imaginary band with one hand.

_There’s a lady who’s sure  
All that glitters is gold,  
And she’s buying a stairway to heaven.  
When she gets there she knows  
If the stores are all closed  
With a word she can get what she came for.  
Ooh ooh, and she’s buying a stairway to heaven._

The Time Lord nodded approvingly. _Led Zeppelin! Love them! Well, honestly, who hasn’t heard of Led Zeppelin?_ He frowned slightly. _I’ve been on Earth too long. I’m going native. Now,_ that’s _terrifying._

_There’s a sign on the wall,  
But she wants to be sure  
‘Cause you know sometimes words have two meanings.  
In a tree by the brook  
There’s a songbird who sings.  
Sometimes all of our thoughts are misgiven._

_I’ve never been sure what they meant when they wrote this,_ the Doctor thought, _but it’s very . . . wise. Well, for a human. Now, where was I? Oh, yes._

_Oooh, it makes me wonder.  
Ooh, it makes me wonder._

No kidding. He had an insatiable curiosity, he did. It got him into trouble more often than not. Luckily, being the genius that he was, his quick thinking and improvising also got them out of trouble.

_There’s a feeling I get  
When I look to the west,  
And my spirit is crying for leaving.  
In my thoughts I have seen  
Rings of smoke through the trees,  
And the voices of those who stand looking.  
Ooh, it makes me wonder.  
Ooh, it really makes me wonder._

_And it’s whispered that soon  
If we all call the tune,  
Then the piper will lead us to reason.  
And a new day will dawn  
For those who stand long  
And the forests will echo with laughter._

By now the Doctor had ceased trying to analyze the song and was just enjoying it, nodding his head and trying very hard not to air-guitar along.

He failed.

The fact he kept breaking out into song with Robert Plant probably didn’t help.

_If there’s a bustle in your hedgerow,  
Don’t be alarmed now.  
It’s just a spring clean for the May Queen.  
Yes, there are two paths you can go by.  
But in the long run,  
There’s still time to change the road you’re on.  
And it makes me wonder._

_Your head is humming and it won’t go.  
In case you don’t know,  
The piper’s calling you to join him.  
Dear lady, can you hear the wind blow?  
And did you know  
Your stairway lies on the whispering wind?_

_At least Rose isn’t awake to see this,_ he thought. _I’d never hear the end of it if she was watching. Well, if she was watching, she’d have already killed me for nicking her iPod._

It was a good thing his pink-and-yellow human was asleep, then. He really wasn’t looking forward to another Tyler slap.

But, wow, this song was depressing. And, somehow, he couldn’t shake the sudden nagging feeling that it could relate to Rose.

_And as we wind on down the road  
Our shadows taller than our souls,  
There walks a lady we all know  
Who shines white light and wants to show  
How ev’rything still turns to gold.  
And if you listen very hard,  
This tune will come to you at last.  
When all are one and one is all.  
To be a rock and not to roll._

_And she’s buying a stairway to heaven. . . ._

At that last verse, all the Doctor could think was, _Bad Wolf . . ._


	5. Day and Night

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry not sorry for this song choice. Found out Billie Piper was a 90s pop star, watched the video for "Day and Night" (multiple times, and I regret nothing), and well, how could I _not_ use it in this fic? Imagining the Doctor's reaction to the music video probably doesn't help. =D

The Doctor’s finger hovered over the Pause button when the chords to the next song, a 90s pop one from the sound of it, started.

Then the vocals kicked in, and he started in surprise.

_All of the day, all of the night  
You do the things that make me feel so right.  
My shining star, my guiding light  
(My shining light).  
And that’s the day and night, babe._

_That almost sounds like . . ._ he thought. _No, it can’t be Rose. Since when is she a pop star?_

_It just ain’t the same when you’re away.  
You are my inspiration.  
I’m hanging on to every word you say,  
Cos you are my motivation.  
You make me feel so right  
Every day and night._

He quickly checked the artist, and his eyes widened. Her name was Billie Piper, but her image . . . she looked identical to Rose.

Unless that was Rose’s stage name?

If he thought about that too much, he’d get a headache.

Besides, this song almost seemed like . . . No.

Was it about _him_?

_Cos the only time I think of you  
Is every day and all night through.  
Whenever I breathe you’re on my mind  
Every day and night, babe._

_All of the day, all of the night  
You do the things that make me feel so right.  
My shining star, my guiding light  
(My shining light).  
And that’s the day and night, babe._

He didn’t really have that effect on her, did he? Yeah, he did, if this song, “Magic Man,” and “Bad Case of Lovin’ You (Doctor, Doctor)” were anything to go by.

_I need you tonight, but you’re not around  
I need to hear your voice, baby.  
Something feels strange; there’s not a single sound.  
I wish you were at my door, babe.  
You make me feel so right  
Every day and night._

_Cos the only time I think of you  
Is every day and all night through  
Whenever I breathe you’re on my mind.  
Every day and night, babe._

_All of the day, all of the night  
You do the things that make me feel so right.  
My shining star, my guiding light  
(My shining light).  
And that’s the day and night, babe._

As long as he was being honest, he cared about her in a way that was more than friendly. He’d been lost from the moment he grabbed her hand and whispered, “Run.” He’d even given up his ninth life to save her . . . and he’d done it by kissing her, something he’d wanted to do from the moment she saved him from the Nestene Consciousness.

Or was it before then?

Not that it mattered right now.

_Gotta let me know, oh yeah,  
When you’re coming home  
(When you’re coming home).  
You know you make me feel so right  
Every day and night._

_Cos the only time I think of you  
Is every day and all night through.  
Whenever I breathe, you’re on my mind.  
Every day and night, babe._

_All of the day, all of the night  
You do the things that make me feel so right.  
My shining star, my guiding light   
(My shining light).  
And that’s the day and night, babe. _

_Oh, who am I kidding? Course it matters._ He frowned. _If my people found out about this, were they still alive . . ._

The Doctor gradually realized he was humming the chorus. He couldn’t help it: It was that catchy!

A thought occurred to him, and he smirked. Oh, he would have so much blackmail material on Rose. This could actually be quite useful.

Mind you, he had no idea what he would do if she randomly burst out singing in the console room. Especially if it was one of her own songs.


End file.
